In the midst of the hand-writing in Montgomery regarding proration and the politically dangerous move of pruning the state’s education budget, there has been a small but growing murmur to reintroduce legislation for a statewide lottery to make up the difference. The lottery lobby contends that, had the 1999 referendum for an education lottery passed, Alabama would have the funds it needs to keep the education budget in the black. Nothing could be further from the truth.
None of the lottery’s profits would have boosted the state’s education budget.
The lottery would have funded three programs apart from the day-to-day operations of public education: computers in classrooms, voluntary pre-kindergarten programs and college scholarships.
Ironically, if Alabama had passed a lottery two years ago, the condition of our state’s education budget would be worse, not better. Had Alabama generated the $150 million needed to meet its goals, it would have had to sell $450 million in tickets per year, none of which would have been subject to sales tax. Because almost all of the state’s sales tax goes to fund education, Alabama would be stuck with an additional $27 million shortfall in its education budget.
New legislation with the specific goal of assisting Alabama’s education budget in general would get nowhere. With an election year around the corner, many legislators are backpedaling from their laissaz-faire choice to “let the people vote” in 1999. Another lottery debacle is the last thing Gov. Siegelman needs.
Alabama spent itself into red ink. The Legislature should support an analysis of state spending with the objective of fully disclosing how taxpayer funds are spent and identifying and eliminating unnecessary and wasteful spending. This will help restore public confidence. Only then can priorities for education at all levels be established.
John R. Hill
Alabama Policy Institute
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